Chapter 4

Servants moved in and out under my mother’s watchful eye, their arms stacked with gowns and jewels—preparations for the bonding ceremony.

“Summer,” my mother called softly, her tone gentle but leaving no room for refusal. “Choose one.”

My fingertips brushed over a silver-white gown, cool silk beneath my touch, intricate embroidery gleaming faintly. My mother’s smile warmed as she explained, “You’ve chosen well. This gown is a family heirloom, passed down through generations. It is only worn on the most sacred occasions. Try it on, my daughter.” With that, she and the servants quietly withdrew.

I slipped into the ancestral dress. It molded perfectly to my form, the silken fabric casting my skin in pale, moonlit hues. The hem flowed like liquid silver, every step shimmering as though I walked on spilled moonlight.

I turned toward the mirror. Reflected back was a figure elegant and sharp, regal and untouchable. My lips curved in a bitter smile. I had imagined this moment countless times—yet never once had I thought the man beside me would not be Ethan. If he saw me now, radiant and untouchable, what would flicker across his face?

Lost in that thought, I nearly screamed when the door slammed open.

Ethan stormed inside, shadows swallowing the room. His Alpha presence surged with fury, pressing down until the air itself felt suffocating. His gaze landed on the gown clinging to my body—ice instantly hardened in his eyes.

In three strides, he was in front of me. His grip locked around my arm like iron.

“What are you doing?” His voice rumbled low, edged with menace.

My chest tightened. I stumbled back instinctively.

He advanced, each step colder than the last.

“Summer, are you defying me?” His eyes cut sharp as blades, his tone glacial. “I told you—you will be my Luna. Must you stoop to this pathetic display to remind me? To threaten me?”

My throat closed, the words dragging out broken. “I didn’t… Ethan, it isn’t what you think.”

His laugh was hollow, bitter.

“Don’t pretend. You really believe a dress can bind me? Can bend me? Foolish.”

The word pretend echoed in my skull, louder and louder, until my vision blurred with tears.

Seven years of waiting, of love given freely—dismissed as nothing but an act.

I stood frozen, my fists knotting the fabric of the gown so tightly my knuckles burned white.

“Why?” My voice cracked, trembling as it broke free. “Ethan… have you ever loved me? Even for a single moment?”

For a heartbeat, something flickered in his brow—hesitation, almost sorrow. But it vanished beneath his mask of frost.

He lowered his gaze, voice a wall of ice.

“Don’t push me.”

Then he spun on his heel and stormed out, the door slamming like a thunderclap.

The silence afterward was unbearable.

Slowly, I sank to the floor, my fingers brushing the cold silver threads of the gown. Tears spilled unchecked, blurring everything until only pain remained.

Seven years of love—every sweet memory now twisted, hurled back like a blade, cutting into the deepest part of me.

It was time.

Time to put an end to this bond.